Wilmer Valderrama was 13 when he and his family moved from Venezuela to the United States. When he arrived, he didn’t speak English. “I didn’t even know how to count to three or say ‘hello.’ So I totally had to start from scratch with ESL classes and watching a lot of I Love Lucy episodes,” says the actor who was born in Miami and then moved to South America when he was 3.

While the family lived in a little two-bedroom house in Van Nuys, California, Valderrama’s father instilled a strong work ethic into his children. He and his sister learned how to speak English before the rest of his family. “That helped us navigate our world and stay on track,” he explains. “We knew that step one was learning to assimilate and building with our tools.” Valderrama also improved his English skills by doing theater which forced him to read, speak out loud and form full sentences. “The more I performed the more I learned English,” he says. “Then the more I fell in love with performing.” He started auditioning and booked a slew of commercials.

From an early age, Valderrama understood what it meant to be an immigrant. “The most beautiful thing you can be is an immigrant,” says the actor who nailed his TV pilot audition for a comedy series called That 70’s Show. April 16, 1998, the date he learned that he was cast as Fez on That 70’s Show, “was the day that the Valderrama family knew the American dream,” he says.

The actor is so passionate about helping people understand what it means to be an immigrant, Valderrama recently partnered with Johnnie Walker to travel to the U.S.-Mexico border to showcase stories of Americans raised nearby. He hopes to spotlight the impact of cross-cultural influences. The trip for the actor, director and activist was part of Johnnie Walker’s new campaign, Keep Walking America. “It felt so right to remind people that the founding DNA of this country comes from immigrants,” he says. “To be an immigrant is to be an American. It’s important, especially during this time, to remember why it’s so beautiful to embrace your heritage.”

Valderrama, who can be seen on NCIS on CBS, The Ranch on Netflix and FromDusk Till Dawn on El Rey, shared more about being an immigrant and what he has learned on his journey so far.

When you arrived from Venezuela and didn’t speak English, what gave you the courage to keep going?

What really helped me is that I knew that wasn’t going to judge my experience in America by anybody else’s horror story. I was going to judge my experience by the limitations I set for myself. That was something my dad really helped me understand. As long as you keep getting up in the morning and as long as you keep getting up when you fall down, you’re always going to make at least one step forward. It’s a humble way of thinking. It’s also a patient and a tolerant point of view. So that is where I really went right. I never forgot my innocence. I tried to look the other way when there was something that felt traumatic and could shy me away from believing my full potential.

I also found that it’s important to be patient with yourself, allow yourself to make mistakes and even go in the wrong direction. Sometimes when you let yourself make a U-turn, you can find the path to where you want to be.

What do you wish Americans could understand about the immigrant experience?

Many Americans have forgotten that immigrants bring a rich and diverse culture along with their ideas and ideals. There is a myth that immigrants take everyone’s jobs. But what is important to remember is that immigrants work as hard as they can with whatever jobs they can find. They are not only hard-working people, they want to embrace America as their home. They become policemen. They become our teachers. Immigrants never forget what it is like back at home. We are so grateful to be of service in the United States.

How did your heritage shape you?

Growing up in Venezuela and Colombia gave me perspective about the limitations and obstacles that exist. Most important is the ability to be able to see past trauma, past the political and economic issues. There is something beautiful that comes from within the spirit of our countries. If you turn the music a little louder, you can find a way to celebrate something.

In the Latino community, we never really complain about what we don’t have. We celebrate what we do have. That helped me come to this country and have perspective that anything can really happen.

What inspired you to be involved with Johnnie Walker’s Keep Walking America campaign?

As an immigrant and a son of two immigrant parents, one who is from Colombia, one who is from Venezuela, it felt so right to remind people that the founding DNA of this country comes from immigrants. I love that the campaign encourages us to continue telling our stories and embrace where we come from while still looking ahead and evolving. It’s about celebrating individuals who came to this country and did extraordinary things. They became examples to their community and other communities. An immigrant is a fearless individual who goes away from his or her comfort zone and is not only able to survive, but is able to prevail and succeed.

What do you wish you could have told your younger self?

If I had an opportunity to give my younger self advice, it would be to allow myself to disagree. Having a real opinion is the No. 1 character trait that promotes your success. It’s the ability to be different. I wish that I would have been able to disagree earlier as opposed to just going with the flow sometimes. That’s a character trait I wish I had developed a lot earlier.

That being said, I’m really proud of who I’ve become to my millennial audience, my heritage and my culture. Professionally, I couldn’t be happier with what I have in front of me at this moment. I’ve done pretty well. But if I could have heard sooner that you should allow yourself to disagree and have a real opinion about things, there’s no way of telling what kind of leadership that I would have bit into a lot earlier.